Do you consider your household to be average? If so, then there’s a pretty good chance that you spend more than $2,000 every year on energy bills.
Of that amount, the Department of Energy estimates that nearly 50 percent is used to heat and cool your home.
That is a lot of money, especially when you consider how many years you have probably lived in your house.
Is there anything you can do to reduce your energy bills?
It turns out that there are many things you can do to save money. As a bonus, many of these steps also are good for the environment.
Keep reading to learn what kind of HVAC investments you can make that will save you money.
Buy a New HVAC System
This may seem like a dramatic move, but it truly could save you tons of money. That’s especially true if your current system has been around for a few years.
Here are some clues that it’s time to update your HVAC system:
- The system is 10 or more years old
- Your boiler or furnace is older than 15 years
- Repairs to the system are needed more frequently than before
- You have humidity problems inside the home
- The HVAC system is excessively noisy
- It’s difficult to control the temperature in some rooms
While it is expensive to buy a new heat pump or other HVAC system, that upgrade will hold plenty of pleasant surprises for you.
For instance, your new HVAC system will be incredibly energy efficient when compared with your old one. The result is that your rooms will reach the desired temperature in less time, and the system will be less overloaded as it tries to maintain this temperature.
Overall, the system just won’t have to work as hard as your old one. You’ll save a significant amount of money each month, and it will likely be surprising how quickly that adds up.
Plus, you’ll benefit from having a quieter HVAC system that doesn’t need a lot of maintenance and is easier to control.
Have Your Existing System Serviced and Maintained
If your system is less than a decade old and seems to perform pretty well, then it’s probably not time to replace it yet. However, it can definitely be beneficial to have a knowledgeable HVAC technician come out and inspect the unit.
When your HVAC system does not receive regular maintenance, its efficiency deteriorates fairly rapidly. As an example, it is not unusual for the condenser and evaporator coils to collect dirt and debris. Cleaning out this debris may be all that’s necessary to restore your HVAC to operating at full capacity.
Plus, routine, preventative maintenance is the secret to protecting yourself against a loss of air conditioning in the summer or heating in the dead of winter. The technician will take a look at the furnace, the air conditioner and any other relevant components. This inspection will identify any problems or components that need to be replaced.
Taking care of these maintenance tasks before they become problems is just one way that you can save a lot of money on your heating and cooling costs.
Change Your Filters
It isn’t necessary to have a technician handle all of your HVAC maintenance. Changing filters is something that you can do quickly and easily. Also, it can save you a great deal of money.
Dirty filters just make your HVAC system work overtime by restricting the amount of air that can flow through them. You may find that your indoor air quality suffers and that your HVAC system just isn’t operating as efficiently as it’s capable of doing.
It is recommended that your HVAC filters be changed at least once every three months. If it’s been longer than that, try switching out your air filters and see what a difference it makes.
Install a Smart Thermostat
Have you heard about smart thermostats? Technologically speaking, they are far superior to the thermostats that you may be used to.
With a smart thermostat, it is possible to:
- Track your energy usage
- Minimize your energy costs
- Control your thermostat from anywhere in the world
- Create a customized heating and cooling schedule
The bottom line is that smart thermostats save you money. They do this by allowing you to turn off the HVAC system when no one is at home for hours at a time. Did you forget to turn it off? That’s OK! All you have to do is use your cell phone to adjust the system from wherever you happen to be.
If your family follows fairly predictable routines each week, then you can create a customized heating and cooling schedule so that you don’t have to remember to adjust the thermostat, and that puts money back into your pocket.
Add Ceiling Fans
If you don’t have ceiling fans, then you may want to install some. If you have ceiling fans but aren’t using them, then it’s time to turn them on.
It turns out that ceiling fans can benefit you in the winter and the summer. When outdoor temperatures soar and the air conditioning is on, use the ceiling fan to get the air circulating through the house. This helps to evaporate sweat from your skin, which automatically helps you to feel cooler.
In the winter, be certain to switch the direction of your ceiling fans. This helps to push warm air down closer to the floor where you can feel it.
Use High-Quality Window Covers
Your windows can let in a surprising amount of heat during the summer. In fact, the Department of Energy estimates that approximately 76 percent of the sun’s rays that soak through your windows turns into interior heat.
Conversely, your windows can cause your home to lose 30 percent of its heating energy. This means that your HVAC system has to work much harder to heat your home.
The answer to this quandary is to invest in high-quality window covers. Blackout drapes and blinds are relatively inexpensive, and they can even add an attractive aesthetic to your home’s interior design. Best of all, they can block the heat from escaping your home and help to prevent the cold from seeping in through the windows.
Alternatively, one of the most efficient solutions for keeping excessive heat out in the summer is to install solar screens on the exterior of your windows. These screens absorb the sunlight’s energy before it can enter the interior of the home.
Another option is to install window films. These metalized, reflective sheets bounce the heat back outdoors before it can come through your windows.
Eliminate Leaks
When houses are drafty, this it is impossible for them to be energy efficient. This is why it’s critical to periodically inspect your house for any gaps, openings or cracks.
The most obvious places to look for leaks are around windows and doors. For instance, if you can see daylight between your front door and the door’s frame, then that’s a leak that needs to be stopped with some weather stripping.
Other less obvious places to find leaks are the places where the foundation meets the siding, around the attic hatch or around wiring holes and plumbing vents.
If you’re having difficulty locating your home’s leaks, then it may make sense to hire a professional to perform an energy audit. These technicians are trained to locate and eliminate leaks.
Contact Delaware Heating and Air
Whether it’s time to replace your HVAC system or just tune up the existing one, give Delaware Heating and Air a call. Our expert technicians are trained to help home and business owners find ways to make their property more energy efficient.
How much money will you save by having critical maintenance performed on your HVAC system? Call Delaware Heating and Air today to find out.
Recent Comments